Telltale
by BTR'slovesong
Summary: Logan has 4 telltale signs before getting sick and Kendall knows them all.


**A/N Okay so I'm sick today and instead of going to class tonight I came home and this happened.**

**WARNING: Protective Kendall and babied Logan. Probably my favorite thing ever. **

Ever since Kendall could remember, there were a few telltale signs that warned him when his youngest and closest friend, Logan, was becoming ill. For someone seemingly so small and fragile, he was irrevocably stubborn and annoyingly tenacious. Getting him to realize he was actually sick was one thing, and getting him to admit he wasn't okay was another. If Kendall wasn't there to persistently convince him that he really wasn't okay, the kid would probably be dead from double lung pneumonia or something.

The first sign was a_lways_ crankiness. Before Logan's illness even really had a chance to set in, he would become a grouchy, snippety mess at everyone around him, which was very uncharacteristic of the usually shy, sweet boy. Most of the time, when he was well, Logan made it his goal to please everybody, even if it meant sacrificing his own happiness for the sake of his friend's. But when he was sick, he had this pout that would stick to his face all day long and never remove it, and every miniscule thing that could go wrong bothered him. So naturally, when Logan woke up one morning with that pout gracing his thin, pink lips and sat down at the breakfast table with a huff, Kendall immediately knew something was off.

"Carlos! You left the milk out again!" Logan scolded as soon as he sat down, automatically blaming Carlos for the gallon of milk sitting on the table. Kendall glanced up from buttering his slice of toast. Logan was muttering to himself about nothing being done right in the house while he shoved the milk back into the fridge.

"Ugh I don't get why we have to be up this early," Logan groaned, collapsing back into the kitchen chair. Kendall gave him a sympathetic smile and offered him the slice of toast he had been preparing. Logan muttered a thank you and started nibbling on the jelly-soaked piece of bread.

"_Because_ Logie-bear," Kendall began, ignoring the way Logan narrowed his eyes at the nickname. "We're a famous boy band now and celebrities wake up early to work hard for their loving, dedicated fans."

Logan stared at Kendall distastefully. He wished there could be an on/off switch for being a popular boy band member. Sure he loved it all in the long run but some days he just wanted to stay home and read his science books and not go to endless dance rehearsals. Today was definitely one of those days.

"Don't call me Logie bear," Logan responded, swallowing the rest of his toast. Kendall just shrugged, because no matter how old they got and how much he hated his nickname, he would always call him Logie bear.

"We have to go you guys!" James called from the front door, backpack slung over his shoulder, clad in his dance rehearsal clothes, his honey colored hair pulled back with a bandana. Logan looked down at his clothing to realize he was still in pajamas. He had been overly tired and slept in a bit too long that morning.

"Be there in a sec," Logan mumbled, abruptly getting out of his chair and stalking to his bedroom.

"Huh, Logie seems to be in a great mood," Carlos said sarcastically as he bounded down the slide, strapping Helmet around his cherubic, dimpled chin.

"He's such a morning person," James joked with a roll of his hazelnut eyes. He clapped a hand on Carlos' back. "Come on Carlos let's start walking."

"I'll wait here for Logan," Kendall said, knowing Logan hated walking anywhere alone. He was the kind that preferred quiet company everywhere he went. He didn't like big groups, yet he dreaded being alone. He just needed that one person with him at all times so he wouldn't feel lonely, and that one person was Kendall.

It took 10 minutes for Logan to get dressed, and Kendall could hear disgruntled noises coming from the bedroom. He stood there questioningly when Logan finally emerged from the room.

"What?" Logan asked, confused.

"What took you so long?"

"I couldn't find an outfit," Logan whined. "Nothing fit right."

"You do realize you sound like a girl, right?" Kendall asked, amused. Logan shrugged his small, bony shoulders. "Well you look fine dude. You ready?"

"Ready," Logan nodded, grabbing his backpack. They walked through the Palmwoods and down several blocks to Rocque Records. It was a beautiful day outside and they always liked to walk everywhere when weather permitted. Sometimes it was faster than driving to be honest, when the traffic was really awful, which was more often than not.

Rehearsals were interesting. Big Time Rush was learning a new dance for a song they had recently recorded, and Logan was whiny and uncooperative the whole time. Every time Carlos stepped on his toe, or he couldn't get a move right, he would through a miniature fit about it, crossing his arms and glaring at the floor. He was so touchy that it was beginning to grate on everybody's nerves. Finally, after a couple of hours, he just became quiet and withdrawn, which concerned Kendall.

"Logan, you alright?" Kendall asked when the music stopped.

"Yeah," Logan said. "It's just a bad day I guess. Nothing is going right. This dance is too hard," he confided, his cheeks heating up. Kendall smiled softly when he saw the flush of red creep slowly onto his cheekbones.

"I know, it's almost impossible. Don't worry, you'll get it. I can help you out with the steps at home bro," Kendall said, placing a hand on Logan's sweaty back. He just gave him a weak smile. That was when Kendall realized Logan's back was heaving as he gasped each breath in with a little bit of difficulty. He listened carefully to hear tiny squeaking noises coming from the boy's chest.

The second symptom: Wheezing. The only time Logan's asthma flared up was whenever he was coming down with something. And now here he was with a pale hand atop his chest, and suddenly he was gasping for air like a goldfish out of water.

"Logan?" Kendall asked, realizing what was happening. "Can you breathe?"

Logan just took a sharp, intake of air, his shoulders trembling with the effort, his chest squeaking and wheezing. He looked at Kendall with panic in his blown wide brown eyes and shook his head.

Kendall put his hands behind his head, trying to think quickly, but his mind was temporarily stunned. Where was his inhaler? Did they leave it at home, in the car?

"My backpack," Logan said between heavy, noisy breaths, as if reading Kendall's mind. The blonde took off towards the locker room and tore open Logan's locker door to find his backpack at the bottom. He opened each compartment and emptied it out with warp speed. Finally, a small blue inhaler tumbled out onto the floor. Kendall grabbed it and sprinted back to the rehearsal room. James and Carlos had caught on to what was wrong after Kendall left the room and were now surrounding their scared buddy, rubbing his back and trying to keep him calm. They made way when they saw Kendall come rushing in. Logan grasped the inhaler with shaky fingers and inserted it into his mouth, pressing down on the canister. A shot of medicine sprayed into his throat, making him cough. James patted his back and encouraged him to breathe. Seconds later, he took one more shot and the wheezing disappeared as quickly as it came. Logan slumped his shoulders, exhausted.

"I haven't had one that bad in a while," He said quietly. Kendall frowned with sympathy, gathering Logan into his arms. He exchanged glances with Carlos and James, who still seemed nervous from the whole ordeal, though much more relieved now that Logan was okay. "It just happened so suddenly."

"Ssh, it's okay, Logan," Kendall said, rubbing his knuckles gently against Logan's scalp, a gesture that always seemed to comfort the brunet. "Maybe you should sit out of rehearsal for today?"

"No, I'm fine now," Logan assured him. Kendall pulled him away from his chest and looked him in the eyes doubtfully. Logan stared back, trying to convince him he was okay. He did regain most of his color in his cheeks. He didn't look sick, so Kendall gave him permission to continue their dancing.

Logan didn't have any more asthma attacks, but he was a bit wheezy and kept his inhaler close by so he could use it when the wheezing became too uncomfortable. By the time rehearsals were finished and they were released to go home, Logan looked worn out, not to mention pale. The dancing had taken its toll out on the usually energetic teenager. Kendall had an unsettling feeling in his gut that this was more than just a random asthma attack, and that feeling was confirmed when sick Logan signal number 3 came into play.

He wouldn't eat.

James made a huge batch of macaroni and cheese for the guys to eat that night, but Logan just picked at his food, looking thoroughly disgusted by the pile of cheesy noodles on his plate.

"Will you just admit it already?" Kendall asked suddenly, startling Logan, who had drifted off into space sometime during dinner. His green eyes bore into Logan's sick brown ones, making the smaller boy fidget.

"Kendall what are you talking about?" Logan asked, playing dumb. He even shoved a spoonful of macaroni into his mouth and chewed it up, never breaking eye contact with Kendall.

"You're sick Logan, stop trying to deny it," Kendall said, his voice an octave away from yelling. Carlos and James looked surprised at this news.

"You're sick Logie?" Carlos asked, his brows furrowing with compassion. Logan dropped his fork to his plate, the agitation that had been forming in the pit of his tummy all day finally coming to a boil.

"No I am not sick," Logan defended, and he looked just as confused as Carlos and James did. Sure he'd been feeling a little off all day, but everyone has bad days, right?

"Come to think about it you do look a bit sick," James pointed out, touching his palm to Logan's forehead. Logan swiped his hand away.

"If I hear the words 'Logan' and 'Sick' in the same sentence again, I'm gonna… I'm gonna..." Logan trailed off, at a loss for a threat. It's not like he was physically capable of hurting any of his huge friends. There really wasn't much he could do when the guys went into baby Logan mode.

Embarrassed, Logan scooted his chair from the dinner table and disappeared into his room, leaving James, Carlos and Kendall bewildered.

"Well that escalated quickly," James said.

"Yep, he's definitely sick," Kendall said with a sigh. Within one day Logan showed almost all of the signs of coming down with something, when usually they spanned over the course of two or three days before illness strikes. To say Kendall was worried about Logan was an understatement. There was still one more sign, though, and Kendall was certain he would show it by tonight.

Later that evening, after cleaning up the dinner dishes and a shower, Kendall entered his room to find Logan lying on his side, staring at a wall. He was breathing a bit heavily and Kendall could tell from where he stood that he was shivering.

"Buddy, why don't you just admit it?" Kendall asked softly.

"Admit what?" Logan asked groggily. He had just been about to fall asleep.

"That you're not feeling so good."

"M'fine. Just tired," Logan mumbled, wrapping his arms tightly around his chest, his cheek smooshed against his pillow. Kendall didn't argue. Logan needed his sleep.

"Good night bro," Kendall whispered, tucking a blanket around his shoulders, hoping it would cease his shivering. He wanted so badly to reach out and feel his forehead, but he knew that he couldn't move too fast when Logan was sick. That would scare him away, make him hide it for even longer. He would have to let Logan admit it at his own pace or they would just go around and around in circles, only making Logan sicker while they were at it. Kendall had played this game dozens of times before. He knew how it would end.

And as predicted, at 3 0' clock in the morning, there came the final predictive warning; clinginess. Kendall woke up to find Logan on his bed, sound asleep. He had no idea when he had crawled into bed with him, but he looked so content on Kendall's pillow, his pale pink lips parted open slightly and long black lashes fluttering on his cheek, that Kendall didn't have the heart to wake him.

Logan smacked his lips and rolled over, grabbing onto Kendall's arm in a vice grip. Kendall winced.

"Jeez, you're strong for a little guy," Kendall said fondly. Logan let out a small cough in reply, still unconscious to the world. But Kendall knew the peace wouldn't last long. He was sick, and it was going to be a long couple of days.

"K-Kendall?" Logan moaned in confusion, blinking his eyes as he slowly woke up.

"I'm here," Kendall said. Logan moaned again. He didn't even remember crawling into Kendall's bed, but the body beside him was warm and safe and strong. He didn't ever want to get up.

"What's going on?" Logan wondered, rubbing at his eyes. His head was hurting and he was so dang tired…

"You're sick is what's going on."

"That explains the headache," Logan whimpered. Kendall immediately reached for the bottle of pain pills on his side table that he put there before bed, just in case this kind of thing happened. He knew it would. Logan took the pills gratefully and rested beside his best friend, his chin nuzzled into his neck and hands curled up against his chest.

"How'd you know?" Logan asked as he drifted off.

"Hmm?" Kendall asked. He was close to sleep again, too.

"How'd you know I was sick, before I even knew?"

"Because I've known you since you were a little boy. When you are about to get sick, you always get grumpy and your asthma bothers you. You lose your appetite, too. I could tell by this morning that something wasn't right. Plus, you get clingy."

Logan's cheeks reddened, but Kendall grinned.

"No no, it's okay. It's probably the only symptom of yours that I actually don't mind," Kendall assured him, wrapping his long arms around Logan's lithe body. He could feel the heat radiating off of him. "You have a fever…"

"I know, I have the chills," Logan said, burrowing deeper into Kendall's warmth, his blonde hair tickling his cheek. Kendall smiled at this. He loved when his friends let him baby them like Logan was now. He loved feeling wanted and protective. He guessed it was the daddy in him coming out.

"Now the grumpiness however, I can do without," Kendall teased. Logan lightly elbowed his ribs, but he laughed and smiled, comfortable in Kendall's embrace.

"Hold me 'til I fall asleep?" Logan asked softly, his voice almost pleading, as if he dared thought Kendall would let him go. Kendall only tightened his arms in response, running his fingers through his dark hair. If that's what Logan needed to feel safe and secure, then he would stay up with him all night and keep him in his arms forever.

**A/N Good night and thanks for reading! I'm going to try to work on some more of Devastate and Desiderium this week plus a couple of those one shots so keep your eyes open ;) xoxoxo**


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